Australia's worst cyclones since 1970

Here is a list of some of the worst cyclones to lash the Australian coast since 1970.

Cyclone Tracy (1974)

Tracy, a category four, struck Darwin in the Northern Territory on Christmas Eve. It is still one of Australia's most destructive with winds of around 250 kilometres per hour. Seventy-one people were killed and many thousands injured. Of a population of 43,000 people, 25,000 were left homeless, according to the Australian government.

Cyclone Yasi (2011)

Category five Cyclone Yasi crossed the far north Queensland coast near Mission Beach early on February 3, 2011, bringing peak wind gusts estimated at 285 kilometres per hour. The massive storm destroyed homes, shredded crops and smashed marinas and island resorts as it roared ashore. Because it was such a large, strong storm, Yasi maintained considerable intensity as it tracked inland, finally weakening to a tropical low near Mount Isa more than 20 hours after it crossed the coast. The damage bill exceeded $800 million.

Cyclone Ada (1970)

Ada, a category four, killed 14 people when it hit Daydream, South Molle and Hayman islands in Queensland's Whitsundays. The damage bill was estimated at $390 million.

Cyclone Althea (1971)

Althea, a category four, was at the time considered to be one of the strongest cyclones to affect the Queensland coast. There were three deaths in Townsville and damage costs in the region reached $50 million. Many houses were damaged or destroyed, including 200 Housing Commission homes. On Magnetic Island 90 per cent of the houses were damaged or destroyed.

Cyclone Larry (2006)

Larry crossed the north Queensland coast near Innisfail as a category four system on March 20. The cyclone was considered the worst to hit Queensland in more than 70 years and damaged 10,000 homes in the region and hit farmers hard. The federal government put the damage bill at $1.5 billion. No lives were lost and no serious injuries were reported.

Cyclone Ingrid (2005)

Ingrid was unusual in that it made landfall in three states and territories in March 2005. It crossed the far north Queensland coast near Lockhart River as a category four. It intensified into a category five as it hit the Northern Territory coastline before weakening and building back up to category four as it crossed WA's Kimberley coast. Large sea swells outside of Australia's warning area caused a boat to capsize near Kerema in Papua New Guinea, with five people killed. There were no reports of serious injury or death in Australia.

Cyclone Emily (1972)

A category four system, Emily crossed the Queensland coast in late March, just south-east of Gladstone. Wind damage was confined to trees and sheds, however, the cyclone had been very severe, generating huge seas that claimed the lives of eight seaman in three separate incidents off the southern and central Queensland coasts.

Cyclone Monica (2006)

Monica was the 17th and last cyclone of the 2005-06 season and terrorised Australia's north for more than a fortnight after starting life off the south-eastern tip of PNG. Monica crossed the Queensland coast near Lockhart River as a category three on April 19. The cyclone was a category one when it entered the Gulf of Carpentaria but strengthened into an intense category five system before it crossed near Maningrida in the Northern Territory on April 24. Despite Monica's intensity, it caused no serious injuries and did relatively little damage to infrastructure. But the uninhabited coastal crossing point in the NT suffered severe vegetation damage, with 50 to 70 per cent of all trees felled, as well as evidence of a five to six-metre storm surge zone in Junction Bay.

Cyclone Alby (1978)

Alby, a category four, passed close to the south-west corner of Western Australia on April 4, killing five people and causing widespread but mostly minor damage to the south-west. The damage bill was estimated to be $39 million (2003 dollars). Storm surge and large waves caused coastal inundation and erosion from Perth to Busselton, while fires fanned by the very strong winds burned an estimated 114,000 hectares of forest and farming land.

Cyclone Winifred (1986)

Winifred, a category three, became a cyclone on January 27, about 450 kilometres north of Cairns. It crossed the coast south of Innisfail on February 1, leading to three deaths - one during the storm, one as a result of associated flooding and a third from severe injuries sustained during the event. The best estimate of damage cost is between $130 and $150 million, most of this being crop losses to the value of about $90 million.

Cyclone Ita (2014)

Cyclone Ita was a category five system but weakened to a category four in the hours before it crossed the North Queensland coast near Cape Flattery on April 12, 2014. It was the strongest cyclone to impact Queensland since Cyclone Yasi three years earlier. Cooktown received the most damage, with 16 buildings destroyed or severely damaged and 200 receiving mostly minor damage. As the storm moved further south, flooding developed which cut access to communities including Ingham.

Cyclone Bobby (1995)

A category four system, Bobby moved slowly and erratically along the Pilbara coast, crossing it just to the east of Onslow on February 25. Seven lives were lost when two fishing trawlers were sunk off the coast from Onslow, while one motorist drowned while attempting to cross a flooded creek near Carnarvon.

Cyclone Justin (1997)

Justin crossed the Queensland coast as a category two cyclone north-west of Cairns on March 22. The combined effects of heavy rain, large seas and gale to storm force winds caused widespread damage in the region between Cairns and Townsville and the loss of two lives. Earlier in Justin 's lifecycle, 30 people were killed in Papua New Guinea and five people died when their yacht was destroyed. Justin was reportedly responsible for an estimated loss of $150 million to the agricultural industry alone.

Cyclone George (2007)

George, a category five, was both very intense and physically large. George was the most destructive cyclone to affect Port Hedland since 1975. Reported impacts include three fatalities and numerous injuries at locations south of Port Hedland.

Cyclone Orson (1989)

A category four system, Orson was one of the most powerful tropical cyclones to affect the West Australian coast. It crossed the coast on April 23 at Cape Preston, 70 kilometres west of Karratha. Five hours earlier the eye of the cyclone passed over North Rankin gas platform where the minimum pressure recorded was 905 hPa, the lowest ever in an Australian cyclone. Several Indonesian fishing vessels were reportedly sunk by the cyclone in the vicinity of Ashmore Island, with at least four lives lost. The total damage cost was estimated to be in excess of $20 million.

Cyclone Joan (1975)

Joan, a category five, was a severe tropical cyclone with maximum measured wind gusts of 208 kilometres per hour. It damaged 85 per cent of the houses in Port Hedland and other settlements along its path. Subsequent flooding damaged roads and sections of the iron ore railways, particularly that of Hamersley Iron. Sheep losses were heavy but there was no loss of human life or serious injury. The estimated damage to private property and public facilities is believed to have exceeded $25 million.

Cyclone Marcia (2015)

Marcia, a category five cyclone, crossed the Queensland coast near Shoalwater Bay on February 20, 2015. It caused an estimated $750 million in damage and left more than 60,000 homes without power in Yeppoon, Rockhampton and Bundaberg as it moved south and eventually out to sea.

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